TAMUK Select Trombone Choir wins Emory Remington Competition
Texas A&M University Kingsville
KINGSVILLE, TEXAS (News Release) — While under the direction of Texas A&M University-Kingsville Professor of Music Dr. Oscar Diaz, the TAMUK Trombone Choir has seen its share of awards, accolades and successful alumni.
Their most recent accomplishment, however, might be the most impressive as the TAMUK Trombone Choir was recently named the winner of the 2025 Emory Remington Trombone Choir Competition — a feat seen as one of the most prestigious honors in the world among the International Trombone Association.
The competition field was for ensembles of eight or more and had no restrictions regarding age, college or professional status, making the win a surreal moment for the TAMUK Trombones as the recording of their 16-member ensemble bested submissions from larger schools of music, professional ensembles and world-renowned music conservatories.
“I was a little bit in shock for a minute,” Diaz said. “I don’t always like to think about the results because the students put a lot of work in and the recordings were very competitive, I thought. When we submitted, I thought we would be competitive, but I also knew the competition we were up against. It’s always big conservatories and schools. This is a big win for the students, the School of Music, for the past studio members, alumni and South Texas band students.”
Each ensemble was required to submit recordings of Alex Knutrud’s Cathedral of Dreams and a piece of the ensemble’s choosing not to exceed 10 minutes. TAMUK chose Sergei Prokofiev’s The Evil God and the Dance of the Pagan Monsters, the second movement from his orchestral Scythian Suite. Recording was done by student employee Daniela Ruiz, a Sound Recording Technology major from Alice.
The TAMUK Trombones were named the winners followed by First Runner-Up Hannover Trombone Class. The New England Conservatory Trombone Choir received an honorable Mention.
The win earns the group an invite to be featured in a premiere performance at the International Trombone Festival at the Western University in London, Ontario, Canada in July.
After having secured top-five and top-10 finishes and even an honorable mention in past competitions, the victory felt like it was a long time coming and resonated with some of the group’s veterans.
“I’ve been a part of five of these past, so to see all the work that has gone into those and to finally see this come out of all that, it’s just astounding,” said Alex Gallegos, a music performance graduate student from Alice who has been with the Trombone Choir for six years. “It’s always something we strive for every year. When it didn’t happen, we said ‘Okay, we’ll keep trying next year.’ It helps us push forward. When we finally see those results, especially for this kind of studio, one that’s so deep, with so many players, I can see how it finally happened.”
The members of the choir credit their win to extra focus on its attention to detail, comradery and ability to collaborate. While those concepts are common in the group, the way it bonded and meshed leading up to the competition recordings felt different for its members.
“We worked together to figure out these pieces,” said Nicolas Castillo, a senior musical performance major and president of the TAMUK Trombone Association from Mission. “We really learned more about each other in the process, and that’s something I’ve seen before but not as in-depth. I know everyone works hard. We were focused on every little moment of the piece. Sometimes it could be frustrating and crazy and make us mad, but the group was so cohesive that there was never any animosity.”
Despite all that work and the grinding process to perfect the pieces, Diaz was most satisfied with how his ensemble worked independently and said that’s what it’s ultimately all about.
“The students took it upon themselves to develop those musicianship skills and were able to teach one another,” he said. “To do it on their own like professionals do — that’s what we’re trying to teach.”
